Recommended Carseats for Airplane Travel

It s the travel season and for many families with small children, that includes flying somewhere. Since so many carseats are heavy and bulky, it makes sense in some cases to invest in a lightweight carseat just for traveling. Plus, this spares you the hassle of re-installing your main carseat when you get back to your own car, weary from traveling.

Ideally, a spare travel carseat should be lightweight (under 15 lbs), easy to install with the lap-only belt on an airplane seat and narrow enough to fit in a typical coach seat. With that criteria in mind, here are several options to consider.

Infant carseats no need to buy anything new as long as your current infant seat can be installed without the base. I guess it s possible to drag the base with you on the plane but that s just making life harder than it needs to be. As long as your infant seat allows installation without the base (most do but there are some exceptions so make sure you know for sure), it s easy to install the carrier rear-facing with the lap-only belt on the plane.

If you re leaving the base at home make sure you practice baseless installation a few times so when you arrive at your destination you know how to install the carseat properly in the car, using a typical lap/shoulder belt.  Here is a video that demonstrates my technique for quick and easy installations of an infant carseat without the base.

Stay clear of products like THIS and THIS. These products are NOT acceptable alternatives to using an actual carseat on the plane to restrain your child. Along the same lines using a sling or infant carrier also isn t a safe alternative for your baby or toddler because you aren t allow to wear your child during take-offs or landings when the risks are highest. There is a good reason for this but the details are ugly so I m not going to go into it right now. If you would like more info on why slings and infant carriers are not a safe alternative to using a carseat on a plane, please see the NTSB website .

UPDATED November 2015

Convertible seats   if you intend to install the convertible seat rear-facing on the plane then you ll be best served by a seat that is fairly compact which will increase your chances of the seat actually fitting rear-facing in the space you have to work with.